The new variety of Hosta is a tissue culture derived sport of the cultivar Hosta `Hadspen Blue`, named Hosta `Aristocrat`, and hereinafter also called "the plant." I discovered the plant as a mutation of a stock plant of `Hadspen Blue` growing in a tissue culture propagation laboratory at a nursery in Zeeland, Mich. USA. The mutation was not intentionally induced, and no mutagen was used. The initial sport, found in June of 1992, was of a sectorial chimera nature. In April of 1993 one of these plants had stabilized to produce a periclinal chimera variegation with a cream margin.
Hosta `Hadspen Blue` is a hybrid of the late Eric Smith of Southampton, England. It is a cross between Hosta `Tardiflora`(unpatented).times.Hosta sieboldiana, and was originally given the cross number of "2.times.7", known for its very blue leaf color. Although other hybrids of Eric Smith's have produced variegated sports, this is the only one from the stock of Hosta `Hadspen Blue` (unpatented). Such sports include Hosta `June` (unpatented) and Hosta `Sleeping Beauty` (unpatented), both from `Halcyon` (unpatented); also `Blueberries and Cream` (unpatented) from `Dorset Blue` (unpatented).
I have asexually propagated the plant successfully by both tissue culture and division of the rhizome and produced plants with the same characteristics of the original plant. Following the tissue culture procedures developed and improved by me at a nursery in Zeeland, Mich., the plant has been successfully asexually reproduced.